Hunter walked into the dining room and paused as he found that he had arrived first. While he was a bit surprised that the mares had not beaten him it didn’t bother him. He had changed out his light armor for a set that he wore normally in the Netherworld. He had hung up his cloak and used the full-length armor instead of the set that ended at his hips. The coloring was the same as the others, boasting pieces of silver and onyx. His senses perked at the feeling of magic coming from the other set of double doors. A magenta aura surrounded them and the doors were flung open. He watched as Twilight galloped into the room, panting as her eyes fell on him.
“Oh no.” She groaned and looked to him. “I am so sorry we are late.”
“Late?” He replied to her as the other mares raced into the room with Spike on their heels. “I just arrived as well.”
“Still we should not have kept you waiting at all.” She replied as she and her friends went to the seats.
“Its fine, Twilight. I was not here for more than a minute before you arrived.” He reasoned to her as he sat down in his usual place and waited. Wrath came to him and he whispered his request to the minion, who took off for the kitchens.
“So what did you need to speak with us about, dear?” Rarity asked him as she sat quietly in her seat.
“Go ahead and place your dinner requests. We will speak while you wait.” He replied to the mare.
“Are ya’ll gonna be eatin’ with us?” Applejack asked as the servants came from the kitchen entrance.
“No. I will eat later if I choose to at all.” He responded.
“Yer too thin. Ya should eat more.” The farm mare replied to him.
Hunter chuckled and nodded to the orange mare. “I appreciate the concern. Contrary to how it seems I do not need to eat as much as one might think.” He explained. “My connection to Sorkeno allows me to be able to function with less.”
“That’s a lucky skill,” Rainbow commented.
Hunter waited as a glass of wine was set in front of him and he sipped it as the mares made their requests. He leaned heavily into the back of his chair and let his mind wander for a time till the servants had left the room.
“So what do you need to tell us?” Fluttershy asked him, her voice quiet.
“I will be going to the Empire lands, I am wondering if you would care to join me.” He said to them and waited for the response.
“When?” Twilight asked.
“I will be leaving tomorrow. Should you choose to come with me then we will be traveling by land.” He responded.
“Why land?” Applejack asked him.
“The reasoning behind that decision is so that you may see what the lands I have are like and how my ponies are treated. This may alleviate any arguments about the current land dispute with Equestria.” He explained.
“And if we choose ta stay here?” The orange mare asked.
“Then I will travel by dragon and the issue is moot. I am asking as a courtesy. It is simply a way to kill two birds with one stone.” He replied.
Fluttershy grimaced at the expression but looked to him as well. “So we can go with you? If we want to?”
“Yes. That is the reason why I chose to join you for a while during your meal. It allows you to have the time to also ask any questions you may have and then it will allow me to plan accordingly.”
Twilight looked thoughtful as she considered what he had said. “How long would it take?”
“It takes a little under a week to get to the Empire lands from the Upper Citadel.” He supplied.
“So it would take two weeks for the entire trip?”
“Give or take a day, yes. Though if the hatching begins I will leave you to travel by land. If needed I can check to see if you travel by way of the Gate is possible. If not then you will be brought back by the same trade routes. It also allows me to check on the states of the roads and see if there are any issues with the routes.” He explained.
Twilight went quiet for a moment. “I would like to go. I don’t see a reason to pass up an opportunity to learn more about your kingdom.”
“Ah’ll come to. Could be fun.” Applejack said to him.
“Will we have time to do any shopping while we are there?” Rarity asked him. He nodded in response. “Then I will join you as well.”
“Can we travel by dragon?” Rainbow asked.
“No.” Hunter chuckled at her question.
“Why not? Would be faster. Plus, it would be really cool to be able to say I have flown with a dragon.”
“That will not be possible,” Hunter replied to her with a short shake of his head.
“Why not?” Pinkie asked him as she bounced in her seat.
“Sorkeno is not a taxi for one. Secondly, I am the only one that is permitted to ride him.” He looked to them as they glanced at Twilight. “I asked Sorkeno if he would permit Twilight to ride with me. He agreed. Twilight has a heightened status that comes with her title. While each of you is precious to her you do not hold that same…clout as she does. Basically, the rest of you aren’t cool enough.” He replied, a teasing glance to Rainbow.
The pale blue mare stared at him as he spoke, then a laugh tore from her. “That was a good one. Okay, I wanna go too.”
Spike nodded from his place next to Twilight. “I’m coming too. Twilight will need her number one assistant.”
“I’ll go,” Fluttershy spoke up as well.
“Me too.” Pinkie chirped and nodded almost frantically to him.
“So all you will go as well?” He asked them and they nodded to him in response. “Then I advise getting the things that you wish to bring packed this evening. We will leave around noon at the latest.” He sipped his wine before continuing to speak. “Twilight.” The mare looked at him and waited as he spoke. “Bring your Regalia. You may be a guest on the trip, but you still hold your position. Despite not being of my kingdom you are still a noble of Equestria.” He explained to her.
Twilight grimaced at the mention of her Regalia but nodded in understanding. “Sometimes being a Princess is more difficult than it’s worth.” She complained. Her tone was light to show that she was teasing, even as her smile lifted the sides of her mouth.
Hunter chuckled. “You think you have it bad? I will trade you for a day.” He said to her.
Twilight shook her head. “No, thank you.” She said to him. “I have seen the pile of paperwork you carry around all the time.”
“That’s true you have. And that’s the documents I have deemed needed. Those are the ones that I decided needed to be looked at immediately. The others, Gnarl has with him.”
Twilight looked away and shook her head again. “No.”
Hunter chuckled and sipped his drink. “That is settled then.” He set his drink down and began to get up from his seat.
“You won’t stay?” Twilight asked him.
“You have more questions?” He asked her and sat back down.
“Why are you going there?” She asked, quickly. “You haven’t mentioned any issues.”
“The Empire Highlands is an area that holds many nobles. Well. They call themselves nobles, but I do not acknowledge their claims of nobility. I allow them to think they are to avoid having to lay into them each time I visit. The reason behind my visit is that the area has been, abnormally quiet the past few weeks. Normally they are in her at least once a week with a request of some kind. Upon investigating it was discovered that they have been busy building something. It has piqued my curiosity.” He explained to her.
Twilight nodded. “That makes sense. Any ideas what it is?”
“Currently, no. The minions I sent to investigate are not suited for questioning. They can give an idea of the size of a structure, but not its purpose. Unless the building has a label, they don’t know.”
The mares nodded and sat back as their meals were brought to them. Hunter downed the last of his drink and got to his hooves. “Enjoy your meals ladies. And drake.” He said as he turned to leave the room.
“You won’t stay?” Spike said as he stood in his chair to look back to the stallion.
“I have things to finish and ready before tomorrow.” He said back.
“Like what?”
Hunter chuckled and looked over his shoulder. “Do you want to pull the wagons?”
“No,” Spike replied.
“Then that is one thing I must organize. Goodnight.” He replied, his tail flicked to the side as he left the room, closing the doors with his red aura.
“Wow. I didn’t think he would ask us to come along.” Rainbow said aloud as they began to eat.
“I admit it is a bit of a surprise,” Rarity added. “But a welcome one, I must admit. While the Netherworld is nicer than I had thought it would be, I am glad to be going somewhere else as well.”
“I agree.” Fluttershy nodded to the white Unicorn. “It will be nice to see more of the kingdom. I’m looking forward to the animals along the route.”
“I can’t wait to get out and do some more flying. Show him that a dragon is not as fast as me.” Rainbow said with a confident laugh.
“I’m sure he does not really care about that Rainbow.” Twilight pointed out to the pale blue mare.
Rainbow shrugged and they all looked up as their meals were brought to them. Twilight dug into her hay burger while Spike chewed on some hay fries. She swallowed the last of her meal and leaned back in her seat. Her friends were slowly finishing as well and were sitting in silence. “I have to admit I am really looking forward to this trip to the Empire lands. He had mentioned them before but I had no idea that he would decide to see if we wished to go with him.”
“No doubt you will be questioning him the entire time.” Rarity teased. “And not just about his kingdom.” She gave a sly grin to the purple Alicorn.
Twilight looked at her and blinked for a moment. “Pardon?” Her voice was quiet as she replied to the other mare.
“You have become quite, enamored with our host.” She teased the Princess of Friendship who flushed. “Though I can hardly blame you, dear. He is a very handsome stallion.”
“I…How did…Why would… Oh, By Equestria.” Twilight sputtered before covering her face with her hooves, trying to hide the vibrant red blush going over her face.
“Oh, it’s perfectly normal, dear.” Rarity said to her with a gentle wave of one manicured hoof. “As I said. He is quite the sight to look at.” The mare gave a mischievous glance to her friend. “He is especially nice to watch when he’s walking away.”
Twilight squealed as her wings flared and she used them to hide behind. Her face a brighter red than Hunter’s own aura. “Oh by Celestia.” She whimpered from behind her feathers.
Applejack gave a loud laugh at her friend’s predicament. “Now ease up on ‘er, Rare’s. Ah, think her coat is gonna change to red forever.” The farmer laughed at the fashion-forward mares good-natured teasing.
Twilight waited for several minutes before she emerged from behind her wings. She folded them back to her sides and stared at the table before a defeated sigh escaped her. “That was mean.” She said to Rarity, a laugh bubbling up in her throat.
Pinkie Pie bounced in her seat and laughed as Twilight spoke. “This’ll be so much fun. We get to travel to a new place, rarity will get to do some shopping, Fluttershy can find some new animal friends, and the rest of us can find new things to try. What if there are new types of candies?!" She squealed and spun in her seat, her bouncing continued.
“I’m sure there will be something for everypony to enjoy, Pinkie,” Twilight said to her exuberant friend. “So we had better head to our rooms and get ready. We don’t want to keep him waiting in the morning.”
The mares all nodded in agreement with her and they made their way back to their rooms. Twilight wished her friends goodnight and went to her own room. She walked in to find Soft Touch wiping off Twilight’s Regalia. She turned to bow her head to the Princess and then wait for the door to close before she spoke.
“I was told that you and the others will be going with the Master to the Empire?”
“Yes. Do you know what kind of things I should bring?” Twilight asked her as her magic lifted one of her suitcases onto the bed and opened it.
“The Empire has a pretty muggy climate, but not unbearable. The temperatures are higher than in the Netherworld. It’s usually close to eighty to ninety degrees with high humidity. So I recommend light items if you wish to pack clothing.” The Handmaiden said to her charge.
“Okay. Spike. Can you go tell Rarity what she said? I get the feeling her guards won’t have that information.” Twilight said as Spike saluted her and ran for the doors.
Soft Touch began to gather her Regalia and wrapped each piece in a soft cloth and began to pack them carefully into her suitcase. “You should probably take a bath before we leave, My Lady.” She said to the Alicorn and tipped her head in the direction of the on-suite bathroom. Twilight nodded in understanding and trotted to the bathroom with the other mare on her heels.
Hunter stood inside the courtyard of the Upper Citadel and looked over the wagons that they had going with them. The minions had brought the mare’s luggage out earlier and they were loaded carefully into the main luggage trailer. The stallion looked up as his ears caught the sound of the dire wolves being brought out and carefully lashed to the wagons. While Hunter was hesitant to use them in this way he did not like having ponies haul the heavier wagons due to the chance of injury being higher. Hunter looked down to the list he had on a clipboard as Gnarl wobbled up to him and waited to address the Overlord.
“Master.” He waited for Hunter to flick one ear toward him and listen. “The mares are on their way to you.”
Hunter gave a slight nod and looked over his shoulder to the Upper Citadels double doors. They were currently propped open and he watched as Twilight led the others out of the doors and toward him. He glanced back to his paperwork and waited for them to reach him. Gnarl remained at his side as Hunter looked through the papers he had with him and was able to check off things as he saw them. The Unicorn stallion began to walk alongside the wagons and was checking them over as he moved past and around them. The purple Alicorn walked briskly with her friends and Soft Touch on her heels. Spike trotted behind her, his face showing excitement as he looked at the wagons.
Hunter glanced to her and then back to the lists he carried. Gnarl kept up with him as he moved. The minion accepting the used papers as Hunter discarded them into his claws. The stallion was quiet as he paused and scanned a wagon for its contents. A yelp sounded and he raised his head to his full height and saw that a certain butter-yellow mare was sitting on her haunches staring at a pair of dire wolves in their harness. The Overlord looked to Gnarl and tipped his horn toward the sitting mare.
Gnarl broke off from him at the silent command and waddled over to the mares. Hunter shook his head and went back to his work. A shrill whistle caught his attention and he looked up, annoyance crossing his features. He ignored Rainbow Dash as she motioned for him to join them. He gave her a short glare and went back to his tasks. ‘That was rude.’ He thought to himself as he was moving around the next wagon when he whinnied as his mane was pulled back and he managed to keep his hooves on the ground. His eyes narrowed as a snarl broke from him. His magic dropped the papers with him and he spun, he angled his head to guard his throat, due to not wearing his helm, as he swung his head. His longhorn smacked into Rainbow’s jaw as she yelped at his movement and he then yanked her to the ground, he folded his forelegs under him and used his broad shoulders to keep her pinned under him. The Overlord leaned his weight heavily onto her shoulders, pinning one of her wings as well.
Rainbow looked up to him as he glared at her once he had stopped moving and was now watching her. “Oops?” She said to him.
Hunter got to his hooves and glared at her. “Oops?” He replied to her. The Unicorn looked up as Rainbow got to her hooves and she found that she was surrounded by several minions and a pair of snarling dire wolves. “Had that been different you would not be breathing enough to say oops.” He snarled at her and spun on his heel, retrieving the dropped papers.
He paused as he worked to push back his temper and shook himself to calm his nerves. He heard a polite cough and looked over his shoulder to find an apologetic looking Alicorn princess. The stallion was silent as she came up to him.
“I am so sorry. I told her not to whistle at you, but Rainbow is a stubborn Pegasus.” She explained as she stood beside him.
“I don’t even whistle at ponies unless I need the attention of a large group. Otherwise, it is reserved for my minions.” He replied to her explanation. He shook his head once more and began to check the last few wagons.
“I think you may have broken her of that habit though.” She added to him and she jumped to keep pace with him.
“Oh?”
Twilight giggled and nodded. “I think she will have a big bump and a headache from that horn smack you gave her.” She smiled as he paused and a grin bit at the sides of his mouth.
Hunter shook his head as a chuckle escaped him. “Well, if it teaches her a lesson than it was worth the action.” He replied as Twilight giggled and nodded to him. “What did she want anyway?”
“One of the wolves snapped at Fluttershy and scared her.”
Hunter paused, aggravation spiking in him. “I told all of you. The beasts I have are not tame pets.” Hunter snarled as he spun to approach Gnarl and the mares. He heard Twilight trotting after him as he reached them and paused.
Fluttershy looked sheepishly up at him as he regarded her. “I’m sorry. I thought if I could talk to them then they would behave better.” She quietly explained. “The dark grey was biting at his harness.” She explained and pointed a hoof to the offending dire wolf.
Hunter’s eyes followed her hoof and he sighed in annoyance. Twilight did a double-take as he approached the offending wolf. The wolf saw the stallion and watched him before trying to bite the traces once more. Hunter waited as the minion assigned to that wolf came forward and tried to stop his biting. The wolf lunged and tried to bite the minion, who jumped back with an angry cry.
Hunter growled and lunged forward a moment later. His hoof reached out and gripped the thick fur and then pushed the wolf roughly to the ground, holding him in place. He heard gasps behind him as he held the snarling wolf. The animal tried to turn its head to bite at his hoof, but Hunter brought his other hoof down on its snout and pushed its jaws closed as he leaned his weight onto it. The wolf stopped snarling as Hunter released the hoof that was buried in the thick fur and reached under the wolf, gripping its throat. Hunter released its jaws and then flipped the wolf to his back and held him there, one hoof on its throat. The wolf stopped and its eyes widened as it looked up to the Overlord above it.
As he held onto the wolf it began to whimper and whine at him. He stepped back and released the animal’s throat, allowing it to roll over and stand. It looked to the Overlord and lowered its head, submitting to the Dark Lord. Hunter snorted and watched as the minion set the wolf into its traces and checked to make sure they were secure. Hunter shook his head with a tired sigh and went to finish his check. He paused a few feet away and looked over his shoulder.
“They are not tame beasts. The dire wolves that you are looking at can kill a pony very quickly. If there is an issue with one of them let their handler tend to them. Normally, I do not need to get involved, unless one is acting out more than normal.”
“That was awesome!” Rainbow said to him and looked from him to the wolf and back again. “How did you do that?”
Hunter looked to her and shrugged. “It's basic dominance. By gripping it by the throat and then putting him on his back it shows that I am stronger and therefore, I am the Alpha of the pack.” The mares stared as he shrugged again and went back to his tasks.
Twilight stared at his back before looking to Gnarl, who had a slight smile on his face. “The Master is the absolute ruler of all things in his kingdom. Even a beast knows that he is out of their league.” Gnarl said to them and waddled to keep up with the stallion.
“You know what the coolest part of that was?” Rainbow said to them when he was out of earshot. “He didn’t drop his paperwork. He still held it up as he tossed that huge wolf around.”
Twilight blinked and then chuckled. “Now that you point it out, yeah that was pretty cool.” Twilight nodded her agreement.
The mares chuckled as they waited to be told where they needed to be. Soft Touch approached them, after making sure that their luggage was in a place that they could easily reach. Gnarl came back to them and began to show them their places.
“If you wish to walk then you are welcome to join the Master or you can ride on the bench seat of the center wagons. The first three and end three are for security, there will also be minions running the edges of the convoy. We ask that you do not bother them, due to them working as you move. The animals are also to be left alone due to the Master’s prior warning.” He said that with a glance to Fluttershy, who nodded sheepishly and sunk back, hiding behind her mane. “Now. The Master is about to move, so I suggest you decide where you will be sitting or walking and please get into position.”
“If I want to walk by him should I just go over to him now? Or should I wait?” Twilight asked the Minion Master.
Gnarl appeared thoughtful as he looked to see where his Lord was. “That is fine, my lady. It appears that he has finished the final check and is getting ready to move everything out.”
Twilight nodded and trotted to catch up with the Overlord. She paused as a loud snicker from Rainbow Dash caught her ear and stopped to look over her shoulder. Rainbow outlined a heart in the air with her hooves and Twilight flushed. She glared at her friend and teleported to the Overlords side.
Hunter started as Twilight appeared at his side. Though, he could see a scowl on her features for a moment before she looked to him and gave a slight smile. Hunter pushed it out of his mind and waited for Gnarl to reach him. The Advisor took the paperwork from him as Hunter's magic flashed as the Upper Citadels front doors opened.
“Here we go,” Twilight said to him and he glanced at her with a slight nod.
“It’s all yours, Gnarl. If the Hatching begins I will call on you to make sure they arrive back to the Netherworld safely.” He addressed the Minion Master as the stallion watched the wagons leaving.
“Of course, Master. Travel safely.” He said and bowed low to the Overlord.
Hunter moved into the center of the formation and walked forward, his hooves thudding on the packed dirt road. Twilight stayed with him as he moved and kept up with his long legs. She looked back at her friends sat on other wagons and Rainbow flew above them. Hunter was silent as he watched the wagons around them for a moment before he settled into an easy pace. ‘Will see how this goes. The structure that they have mentioned is concerning. While I will keep an open mind, I will, of course, remain cautious. I have blundered into things before. I will not make the same mistake again.’ He thought to himself as he walked.
“So what do we do when it gets dark? I forgot to ask Gnarl.” The Princess said to him as they walked.
“I will send a group of minions and two of the wagons ahead to erect camp. That way by the time we reach them it will be set up and ready. In the morning, we will leave and they will catch up when everything is put away.” He informed her.
“Oh. That’s actually very efficient.” She admitted and nodded in approval.
“I have done it the old-fashioned way before. It just takes too long. A five-day trip turned into seven.” He replied to her.
“Oh. Oh yes, that would be frustrating. So is that why everything had to be checked before we departed?”
“For the most part yes. It allows me to see that everything is in place. But also allows me to check over what we have and see if I have forgotten anything. I would rather not have to send a few wolves back to retrieve anything.” He informed her as he looked ahead.
Twilight nodded in understanding and went quiet. Barking from the wolves caught her ear and she listened for a moment before they began to quiet. “So are those wolves the ones the minions use for combat?”
Hunter shook his head. “No.” He said aloud with a shake of his head, and then glanced to her as he went on. “The combat wolves are smaller. The typical dire wolf is between your height and mine. The others are a bit shorter than you. See?” He pointed his horn off to the right and Twilight looked like a small group of mounted brown minions galloped past on the shorter wolves. “Those are the war mounts. They are more compact than the dire wolves. The dire wolves are bred for their size and while they are fierce they are not designed for the minions to ride. They are also, a bit difficult to control.” He admitted to her.
The purple Alicorn looked from the running wolves back to him. “So they are used for this?”
“Not normally. Normally I would bring along servants that are trained to be able to haul the wagons. But after I went over the math for it I decided that some of them would be too heavy and could cause injury to a pony. The dire wolves are trained to harness due to their size so using them for this task seemed more appropriate.” He admitted to her.
“So the wolves pull the heavier wagons?” She replied.
“Yes. They have broader chests allowing for them to breathe more efficiently and their hearts to beat unhindered. So they will be able to pull much greater weight than any pony. In terms of raw pulling power the wolf wins every time.” He said to her and looked to the ponies that were pulling the wagons behind them.
“So the ponies pull the lighter ones and are in the center of the group?”
“For the most part, yes. If the wolves are in the front and back then ponies acting foolishly are less likely to appear. They act as a deterrent.”
Twilight tilted her head at his comment. “What do you mean?”
“I assume bandits don’t happen in Equestria?”
“They do. But it’s not common.” She said back to him.
“It’s a bit more common here. So the wolves that are in front are the ones that are also combat trained. Their job is to look and listen for anything out of the ordinary. While I have the brown, red, and green minions running the perimeter I also have other measures in place.” He informed her.
“Wow. I had no idea you had organized all of that this morning. It’s actually pretty impressive.” She said to him. “When did you start organizing them this morning?”
“Very early this morning, yes. I was up a couple of hours before dawn to start the process.” He replied.
Twilight's head spun to look at him. “I think Spike asked this once. When do you sleep?” She asked him.
Hunter chuckled. “I am connected to a dragon so for the most part, I can run on much less than what would be called normal for a stallion of my height and age. I sleep for three to five hours, give or take an hour or so.”
“So you sleep very little and eat even less?” She teased.
Hunter nodded. “In a way.”
Twilight shook her head at him and fell silent. Hunter looked over his shoulder after an hour or so and then back to Twilight. “Your assistant is waving frantically at you.” He informed the purple Alicorn.
Twilight looked back and levitated the baby dragon to her back. “What is it, Spike?”
“A letter from the Princess. She said to keep her informed and hopes we have a nice trip with the Overlord.” He said to her.
Twilight nodded her thanks to the baby dragon and levitated him back into his place with their friends. She looked over to the stallion at her side and gave a quiet cough. “Sorry about that. I forgot that I had sent a letter to the Princess last night. I promise you I don’t tell her everything. Like personal things, we have talked about. I have kept that secret.” She said to him, a smile on her muzzle.
Hunter nodded. “I know.”
Twilight paused for a step at his unconcerned reply. “You know?”
“Yes. In the Netherworld, there is higher magic at work. Nothing leaves the Netherworld without my knowing about it.” He informed her.
“Meaning?”
“The letters you send, go to me first.” He said to her.
Twilight stopped in her tracks and stared at him. He saw that she was not with him and looked back to her. Her eyes were wide as she stared at him.
She blinked and then he heard her inhale. “THEY WHAT!?”